Is Metroplex ok for seahorses?

[animateash]

Just wanting to be certain that metroplex is safe for seahorses before I use it.

I noticed a few extremely tiny worm like things swimming in the water column of my dwarf seahorse tank. A quick look online makes me suspect myxozoans, due to the shape and swimming movement. I already use Paraguard in my tank at every water change as a preventative, but clearly they weren't dead yet.

All my dwarves look and act just fine, but I want to make sure I nip any problem early. I've read great reviews about metroplex but all from more standard fish keeping.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Just wanting to be certain that metroplex is safe for seahorses before I use it.

I noticed a few extremely tiny worm like things swimming in the water column of my dwarf seahorse tank. A quick look online makes me suspect myxozoans, due to the shape and swimming movement. I already use Paraguard in my tank at every water change as a preventative, but clearly they weren't dead yet.

All my dwarves look and act just fine, but I want to make sure I nip any problem early. I've read great reviews about metroplex but all from more standard fish keeping.

Metroplex is the antiprotozoal drug, metronidazole and dosed properly, it is safe for seahorses. However, I'm not sure that is what you should be dosing with.

the old adage is, if you see it swimming around in an aquarium, it isn't a fish parasite. These are likely incidental worms that are feeding on feces and/or uneaten food. Paraguard is also an anti-protozoal medication and won't kill worms.

Myxozoans are tiny internal parasites, ranging down to 10 um, even a microscope has difficulty in seeing them. Here is a write-up I did on this group of parasites:

Sporozoans, such as myxosporidians, can internally infect fish. Myxobolus cerebralis is a parasite of salmonids (salmon and trout) that causes whirling disease. At least two species of myxosporidian fish parasites require a worm as an intermediary host. Henneguya salminicola is another species that infects salmonids. Infected fish have numerous large white cysts (up to 1 cm) in their skeletal muscle. When ruptured, the cysts release a white liquid filled with tiny myxozoan spores (~10 µm). No doubt, these parasites are well-known in salmonids due to their economic impact. It is presumed that other fish have similar myxosporidian infections but are just less studied. There is no treatment for myxosporian infections, but luckily, they are a relatively rare affliction in aquarium fishes.

 

[animateash]

Metroplex is the antiprotozoal drug, metronidazole and dosed properly, it is safe for seahorses. However, I'm not sure that is what you should be dosing with.

the old adage is, if you see it swimming around in an aquarium, it isn't a fish parasite. These are likely incidental worms that are feeding on feces and/or uneaten food. Paraguard is also an anti-protozoal medication and won't kill worms.

Myxozoans are tiny internal parasites, ranging down to 10 um, even a microscope has difficulty in seeing them. Here is a write-up I did on this group of parasites:

Sporozoans, such as myxosporidians, can internally infect fish. Myxobolus cerebralis is a parasite of salmonids (salmon and trout) that causes whirling disease. At least two species of myxosporidian fish parasites require a worm as an intermediary host. Henneguya salminicola is another species that infects salmonids. Infected fish have numerous large white cysts (up to 1 cm) in their skeletal muscle. When ruptured, the cysts release a white liquid filled with tiny myxozoan spores (~10 µm). No doubt, these parasites are well-known in salmonids due to their economic impact. It is presumed that other fish have similar myxosporidian infections but are just less studied. There is no treatment for myxosporian infections, but luckily, they are a relatively rare affliction in aquarium fishes.

Thanks for this. That's somewhat reassuring to know that I couldn't have possibly seen myxozoans. The diagram of them i was referencing definitely didn't discuss scale, so that hadn't crossed my mind. .